It would be more accurate to say that Xu Guangqi was sharing his joy with himself rather than talking about things.
This is what Zhu Youxiao, as the emperor, would like to see.
When Xu Guangqi finished speaking, Zhu Youxiao smiled and told Chen Hong, "Bring a bowl of tea to Xu Aiqing."
Xu Guangqi said with a smile: "Thank you, Your Majesty."
After talking for so long, he was indeed thirsty.
After Xu Guangqi finished his tea, Zhu Youxiao said with a smile, "I called you here today because I have a few things to discuss with you. The first thing I wanted to ask about is the military training. I heard from you that things are going smoothly, which is very good."
"Besides that, I have one more thing," Zhu Youxiao said softly, "I heard that you, my dear, have been studying agricultural policy in Tianjin!"
After saying this, Zhu Youxiao looked at Xu Guangqi with a smile.
Zhu Youxiao had known about this matter for a long time, and he had also planned to use Xu Guangqi.
You have to know that at this point in time, food is an issue that can never be avoided.
There will be more and more natural disasters, and people's lives will become increasingly difficult.
There is no way to deal with natural disasters. Although we can rely on building water conservancy projects to make up for it, the reality is that the Ming Dynasty does not have that much money.
Even if you find a way to make money yourself, it won't happen overnight and you need to do it slowly.
Moreover, productivity was low in that era, so such projects were not easy to carry out.
Besides, the main problem now is the Little Ice Age, which is mainly caused by the cold weather.
In such circumstances, the best solution is to promote crops with high yield, short production cycle and strong resistance to natural disasters.
In the past there may not have been any solution, but now there is. Many alien species have been introduced, such as potatoes, sweet potatoes, and corn, but they have not been widely promoted and are still unknown in many places.
The speed of information dissemination in this era is relatively slow, and no one at the middle and senior levels pays attention to this matter. There is no policy promotion, and small farmers only learn on their own.
This method is too slow and totally inconsistent with my ideas, so I have to promote it well, at least so that the people have something to eat and can survive the disaster years.
At the same time, the food problem was solved, and many subsequent problems were easily solved.
Who was the best at this in the Ming Dynasty?
There is only one answer, and that is Xu Guangqi.
What Zhu Youxiao valued most about Xu Guangqi was actually this aspect, rather than his ability to train soldiers or his ability to forge firearms.
Someone can be found to replace him in terms of military training and firearms, but Xu Guangqi is the most suitable candidate for promoting crops.
First of all, Xu Guangqi liked to tinker with these things, and secondly, he was knowledgeable and willing to do it.
You have to know that this is probably a thankless job that does not show much merit, and few people are willing to do it.
Hearing Zhu Youxiao's question, Xu Guangqi said, "I am indeed doing this. A few years ago, I came into contact with some crops brought from Southeast Asia. I found that those crops have many advantages. Not only are they high in yield, but they are also more resistant to natural disasters. At the same time, they can be grown in many places."
Zhu Youxiao also knew this, as sweet potatoes and potatoes can be grown in many places.
Especially potatoes, so the popularity of these two crops can make it possible to grow food on a lot of useless land, and the same is true for corn.
"My dear, have you achieved any results in the past few years?" Zhu Youxiao asked Xu Guangqi.
Xu Guangqi also showed an excited expression on his face.
He now felt that His Majesty was truly an extremely wise emperor. Before he even reported the matter to the emperor, His Majesty had already noticed it, which showed how good His Majesty's vision was!
Xu Guangqi introduced his experience in detail.
In Xu Guangqi's words, he has been planting for three years.
During Xu Guangqi's introduction, Zhu Youxiao couldn't help but feel a little excited.
Because Xu Guangqi has been breeding the best seeds for the past three years, after cultivation, the seeds are now suitable for small-scale trial planting.
This is Xu Guangqi’s credit!
Zhu Youxiao immediately felt satisfied.
"In that case, my dear minister, you can try large-scale planting." Zhu Youxiao said, "As for the location, I have also prepared it. You can choose several imperial farms in the capital, and you can choose the location as you wish."
Xu Guangqi did not expect that His Majesty would use the imperial farm for experiments. That was His Majesty's land and the private income of His Majesty's palace.
However, Xu Guangqi had to admit that this was the best way.
It is too difficult to conduct experiments on the fields of ordinary people. On the contrary, the imperial farm does not have these problems because it is His Majesty's private property.
"My dear, please do this as soon as possible." Zhu Youxiao continued.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
